Coercive Persuasion and Gregory Mull

This page discusses the 1986 trial of a lawsuit between Gregory Mull and Elizabeth Clare Prophet, leader of Church Universal and Triumphant. The case raises important and relevant issues such as whether hypnosis and brainwashing can make people act against their will, for example in signing documents. Whether chanting causes hypnosis or brainwashing, and whether prayers can inflict harm or the subject of a lawsuit, and whether raising such questions puts a religion on trial.

The church had sued Gregory in 1981, after which he counter-sued not only the church but also its leaders. He claimed to have been manipulated through coercive persuasion. Details of that trial as well as a discussion of coercive persuasion and “brainwashing” theories and their place in US legal history can be found in the free ebook linked below.

Scroll down for links to Mull’s correspondence and the trial transcript.

Elizabeth Clare Prophet and Gregory Mull c. 1980, with Camelot Master Plan, a design that was created by Smith and Williams architects in 1978. The project was never completed but Gregory’s role in working on the project was the subject of the 1986 trial whose details are discussed and included on this page.